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These Classic Logic Problems are the easiest of the three types, and can be thought of as building blocks to some of the more difficult exercises. The use of simple math and logical deduction will provide the key to these clever problems.




     

  1. MILK JUGS:

    A milkman has two empty jugs: a three gallon jug and a five gallon jug.  How can he measure exactly one gallon without wasting any milk?     solution

     

  2. SOCKS and SHOES:

    You are in the dark, and on the floor there are six shoes of three colors, and a heap of twenty-four socks, black and brown.  How many socks and shoes must you take into the light to be certain that you have a matching pair of socks and a matching pair of shoes?     solution

     

  3. PLAYING CARDS:

    There are three playing cards lying face up, side by side.  A five is just to the right of a two.  A five is just to the left of a two.  A spade is just to the left of a club, and a spade is just to the right of a spade. 

    What are the three cards?     solution

     

  4. TRUE STATEMENTS:

    A. The number of false statements here is one.

    B. The number of false statements here is two.

    C. The number of false statements here is three.

    D. The number of false statements here is four.


    Which of the above statements is true?     solution

     

  5. FOUR DIGIT NUMBER:

    What is the four-digit number in which the first digit is one-third the second, the third is the sum of the first and second, and the last is three times the second?     solution

     

  6. TRAINS:

    One train runs from A to B at 105 miles per hour, the other runs from B to A at 85 miles per hour.  How far apart were the two trains 30 minutes prior to their crossing?     solution

     

  7. MATH PUZZLE:

    Assume 9 is twice 5; how will you write 6 times 5 in the same system of notation?     solution

     

  8. LOGIC POEM:

    The following verse spells out a word, letter by letter.  "My first" refers to the word's first letter, and so on.  What's the word that this verse describes?     solution

    My first is in fish but not in snail
    My second in rabbit but not in tail
    My third in up but not down
    My fourth in tiara not in crown
    My fifth in tree you plainly see
    My whole a food for you and me
     

  9. TWIN BROTHERS:

    Suppose there are twin brothers; one which always tells the truth and one which always lies.  What single yes/no question could you ask to either brother to figure out which one is which?     solution

     

  10. THREE BOXES:

    There are three boxes, one contains only apples, one contains only oranges, and one contains both apples and oranges.  The boxes have been incorrectly labeled such that no label identifies the actual contents of the box it labels.  Opening just one box, and without looking in the box, you take out one piece of fruit.  By looking at the fruit, how can you immediately label all of the boxes correctly.

    Which box did you open and how can you be sure to label all boxes correctly?     solution

     

  11. BOY or GIRL:

    A boy and a girl are sitting on the porch.  "I'm a boy," says the child with black hair.  "I'm a girl," says the child with red hair.

    If at least one of them is lying, who is which?     solution

     

  12. FOOTBALL POSITIONS:

    Bill, Ken, and Mark are, not necessarily in this order, a quarterback, a receiver, and a kicker.  The kicker, who is the shortest of the three, is a bachelor.  Bill, who is Ken's father-in-law, is taller than the receiver.

    Who plays in which position?     solution

     

  13. THREE SPIES:

    Three spies, suspected as double agents, speak as follows when questioned:

    Albert: "Bertie is a mole."
    Bertie: "Cedric is a mole."
    Cedric: "Bertie is lying."

    Assuming that moles lie, other agents tell the truth, and there is just one mole among the three, determine:

    1.) Who is the mole? solution
    2.) If, on the other hand there are two moles present, who are they?
     

  14. RIVER CROSSING:

    A man needs to cross a river in a canoe.  With him, he has a bag of grain, a chicken, and a fox.  He can only carry one of the three at a time.  If he leaves the grain and the chicken, the chicken will eat the grain.  If he takes the grain, the fox will eat the chicken.

    How does he successfully cross the river with his load?     solution

     

  15. 12 MARBLES:

    Given twelve marbles that are identical in size, shape, and color, determine which single marble is heavier in weight than the others.  You are supplied with a balance and must conclude your determination in three weighings.     solution

     

  16. HOW OLD?:

    If you add the age of a man to the age of his wife, the result is 91.  He is now twice as old as she was when he was as old as she is now.

    How old is the man and his wife?     solution

     

  17. CUT THE CAKE:

    How is it possible to cut a traditional circular cake into 8 equal size pieces, with only 3 cuts?     solution

     

  18. WHAT'S MY ADDRESS?:

    I live on Sunset Boulevard, where there are 6 houses on my side of the block.  The house numbers are consecutive even numbers.  The sum of all 6 house numbers is 8790.  You don't know which block I live on, and it's a long street, but I will tell you that I live in the lowest number on my side of the block.  What's my address?     solution

     

  19. PUZZLE SOLVING:

    If the puzzle you solved before you solved the puzzle you solved after you solved the puzzle you solved before you solved this one, was harder than the puzzle you solved after you solved the puzzle you solved before you solved this one, was the puzzle you solved before you solved this one harder than this one?     solution

     

  20. BURNING ROPES:

    A rope burns non-uniformly for exactly one hour.  How do you measure 45 minutes, given two such ropes?     solution

     

  21. PENNIES:

    Mary had a coin purse with fifty coins, totaling exactly $1.00.  Unfortunately, while counting her change, she dropped one coin.  What is the probability that it was a penny?     solution

     

  22. WHO DONE IT?:

    Melissa and Jessica were working on the computer along with their friends Sandy and Nicole.  Suddenly, I heard a crash and then lots of shouts.  I rushed in to find out what was going on, finding the computer monitor on the ground, surrounded with broken glass!  Sandy and Jessica spoke almost at the same time:

    Jessica saying, "It wasn't me!"
    Sandy saying, "It was Nicole!"
    Melissa yelled, "No, it was Sandy!"
    With a pretty straight face Nicole said, "Sandy's a liar."

    Only one of them was telling the truth, so who knocked over the monitor?     solution



Lateral Thinking
Visual Logic Puzzles
Bonus Section
 

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